Story and Photos: Audrey Wright
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Now back to the story....
Like many others these past two years, I've been waiting to get back to doing what I love and being around people. I'm so happy live music has started to come back this year and with so many shows coming through Omaha/Council Bluffs/Lincoln it's almost like a music overload!
Summer is the best time for live shows and Stir Concert Cove in Council Bluffs, IA is the cream of the crop when it comes to outdoor venues in the metropolitan area. The staff are great and so are the artists that come to play here.
I had received my booster shot earlier in the week and it threw me for a loop. By Friday I wasn’t sure if I would make it to this show. To make things trickier, Joan Jett's team was not allowing photo access. But the amazing staff at Stir were kind enough to grant review tickets, so I pulled myself together the day of and came out to enjoy the evening with my mother who is also a Joan Jett fan.
We arrived fairly early to get a parking spot, find a spot to sit, and enjoy the amazing weather, drinks, and food. A woman and her partner asked if they could sit by us and she began to tell me how she has been a huge fan of Joan Jett since she was a little kid. Her first concert was to see her play when she was 10 years old back in the 1980s.
After a couple hours enjoying the atmosphere and taking it all in, Joan Jett and The Blackhearts walked out on stage and played their hearts out. They played a lot of their hit songs such as "I Hate Myself For Loving You", "I Love Rock N’ Roll", and "Cherry Bomb". They also played some of their deep cuts, including a song Bruce Springsteen wrote for a movie that Joan starred in with Michael J. Fox called Light Of Day. After an hour of playing, they switched things up a bit and played some tunes off of their new acoustic album, including and acoustic version of "Cherry Bomb". I was blown away by such talent. I have always listened to Joan Jett’s music and she was definitely one on my bucket list to see perform. Her voice has always been very distinct and raspy which makes her performance even better.
A huge thank you to Stir Cove for having me out on such a wonderful evening, your amazing hospitality is unmatched. What an incredible way to kick off Memorial Day weekend. Keep on rocking in the free world!
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